Shreveport, LA – Three men have been arrested in connection with the murder of 22-year-old Shreveport Police Officer Chateri Payne.

Caddo Juvenile Court Deputy Clerk Lawrence Pierre, 21, Glen Frierson, 38, and the father of Officer Payne’s daughter, 26-year-old Treveon Anderson, have each been charged with second-degree murder, KTBS reported.

Social media posts indicated that Anderson and Officer Payne were engaged to be married.

Anderson and Officer Payne lived together at the home where she was killed, and he was questioned by investigators immediately after her murder, Shreveport Police Chief Ben Raymond said during a press conference on Wednesday morning.

Anderson initially told detectives that he was present when the shooting occurred, Chief Raymond said.

“He advised he was inside the residence when he heard gunshots, then went outside and shot at a person wearing all black clothing whom he believed to be the suspect,” the chief explained. “He then noticed that Officer Payne had been shot.”

But during the course of the investigation, police determined that Anderson hadn’t told them the truth about what had occurred outside their Midway Avenue home.

“We believe Anderson shot and killed her and concocted the false narrative of her being murdered by an unknown suspect,” Chief Raymond said.

The investigation is ongoing, and it is not yet clear what transpired prior to Officer Payne’s murder.

The couple’s child was inside the home at the time of the fatal altercation, but Chief Raymond said he does not believe she witnessed her mother’s death.

Frierson and Pierre were described as “accomplices” in the fatal shooting, but Chief Raymond did not provide details regarding their roles in the incident.

“[It] met the level of being charged with the murder,” he noted.

Pierre also led detectives to the location of the hidden murder weapon.

Chief Raymond praised the state, local, and federal law enforcement officers involved in identifying and apprehending the “three evil cowards” responsible for Officer Payne’s “brutal murder.”

“These men and women represent some of the finest investigative minds in the State of Louisiana, and the nation as a whole,” he added.

The investigation is ongoing, and the prosecutorial phase is just beginning, Chief Raymond said.

The arrests came one week after the uniformed officer was fatally shot outside her Caddo Heights home at approximately 8:20 p.m. on Jan. 9, as she was heading out to her running patrol car to go to work, KTBS reported.

Officer Payne, a mother of one, was found with multiple gunshot wounds, including one to the head, according to FOX News.

She was pronounced dead within hours after the attack, Shreveport Police Chief Ben Raymond said during a press conference on Jan. 10.

“We will work to identify and apprehend the coward or cowards responsible for the brutal murder of Officer Payne,” he vowed at the time.

Officer Payne was hired by the Shreveport Police Department on July 27, 2018, Chief Raymond told reporters in the hours after her murder.

“It was evident to all [that] she had a true calling to serve,” he noted.

On Nov. 16, 2018, Officer Payne graduated from the police academy – a day Chief Raymond remembers well.

“I handed her diploma to her, [and] shook her hand, as she proudly walked across the stage and joined our ranks,” the chief recalled. “I saw firsthand the excitement in her eyes as she embarked upon her chosen career of serving others.”

Officer Payne chronicled her achievement in a Facebook post the same day.

“Long Days. Aching Nights. But I decided to stand tall on my dream,” she wrote. “Never lose sight of who you are and where you come from… build on who you are and to become an influential and better person…it is always something bigger than MYSELF.”

“My personal mission is to become that positive influence. To Protect those who can’t protect themselves & to at least try to push someone to being a better version of themselves!” Officer Payne explained.

“It is an honor to be able to join such a powerful family with my Brothers and Sisters in Blue,” the rookie officer wrote. “May the journey begin.”

On the day of her graduation, Officer Payne posed in uniform alongside Anderson for a photo, the Shreveport Times reported.

“It was a long journey lot of early mornings and waiting but it worth every minute for you to chase your dream and be successful,” Anderson wrote in a Facebook post, according to the paper. “May God continue to bless you in your career and our relationship. I’m so proud of you and the woman you have became. I love u baby.”

Officer Payne will be laid to rest on Saturday.